Jigawa governor calls for research-led next phase of development

Jigawa State Governor Umar Namadi has called for closer cooperation between government and academics, saying the State’s next phase of development will be driven by knowledge, research and evidence. He spoke on Saturday at an interactive session with the Forum of Jigawa Academics at the Government House in Dutse. The meeting was the fourth in a series and brought together academics, researchers, teachers and other intellectuals from higher-education institutions.

Mr. Namadi said the session was intended to move beyond accountability by examining evidence, refining policies and identifying how knowledge could accelerate implementation of his administration’s 12-Point Agenda. He said the agenda provided a framework for assigning responsibility, tracking implementation and measuring results.

Agriculture was identified as a central part of the State’s economic transformation strategy. The governor said Jigawa had established an Agricultural Transformation Agency, created a Ministry of Livestock Development and incorporated a farm mechanisation company. He said the company would operate 60 centres with 400 tractors and 60 combine harvesters, including 100 tractors procured through a presidential food-security intervention.

He also cited partnerships involving rice production, seed systems, livestock, dairy, horticulture, irrigation, mechanisation and agro-processing. The State, he said, was supporting 10 PhD and MSc researchers under a wheat value-chain programme and postgraduate training for more than 80 academics in agricultural disciplines. More than 100 livestock officers were receiving specialised training through a partnership with India’s National Dairy Development Board.

On education, Mr. Namadi said at least 26% of annual government expenditure was committed to the sector. He listed teacher recruitment, school infrastructure, ICT-enabled learning, girl-child education and support for nomadic and mass education among the initiatives.

The governor also reported the revitalisation of 180 primary healthcare centres, the construction or completion of hospitals and the recruitment of more than 1,370 health workers. On infrastructure, he said more than 300 km of inherited road projects had been completed and 59 contracts covering about 1,100 km had been awarded since 2024.